Post-Baccalaureate Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

The program holds national accreditation approval through the Com-mission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). 

CCNE
One Dupont Circle, NW, Suite 530
Washington, DC 20036-1120
Phone: (202) 887-6791 

The Division of Nursing offers a Post-Baccalaureate DNP, Family Nurse Practitioner program. The program prepares diverse clinical practitioners who improve health, influence health care and apply the best evidence to clinical practice. The DNP graduate will be able to provide leadership in health policy that will ensure improvement of population and global health. The DNP graduate as a collaborative leader will be in a position to analyze complex organizational and clinical practice issues and effect improvements in health care. 

The 82-credit Post Baccalaureate DNP program can be completed in 8 academic semesters and 4 summer sessions. Students may complete the program in 4-8 years.

The 40-credit DNP program can be completed in four academic se-mesters and two summer sessions. Students may complete the pro-gram in 2-4 years. 

The goals of the program are to: 

1. provide a high quality educational program that prepares candidates for successful careers as clinical experts and leaders
2. implement a program of study that promotes expert clinical practice, continuous practice improvements, effective leadership practices, and clinical scholarship
3. participate in the evolution, development, and improve-ment of clinical practice for professional nursing
4. create and implement a rigorous clinically focused doctoral program which demonstrates the continuous improvement of clinical practice and scholarship impact
5. impact and improve clinical practice, clinical outcomes, health policy, and care delivery methodologies.

Admissions 

There are two entry points for the Post Baccalaureate DNP program. Students may enter the program with advanced standing following completion of a master's degree in nursing. A gap analysis rubric will then be used to ascertain additional courses needed to complete the program. Students may complete the 82Board of Trustees-credit Post-BSN DNP program in 4-8 years. 

Students are admitted to Dominican University New York through the Office of Graduate Admissions on a competitive basis: 

A candidate will: 

1. be a graduate of a fully accredited, license-qualifying bacca-laureate degree nursing program
2. hold a license to practice nursing or advanced practice nursing in New York State or be eligible to hold same
3. have at least one year of relevant, full-time registered nurs-ing or advanced practice nursing experience
4. have active membership in a national nursing organization
5. submit transcripts from all college-level study reflecting a cumulative GPA of 3.0 in undergraduate and/or a 3.3 for graduate work
6. submit a current Curriculum Vitae
7. submit 3 letters of recommendation attesting to the appli-cant's intellectual ability, academic achievements, leader-ship skills, and professional commitment, including one from a professional colleague who holds a doctoral degree
8. submit a personal goal statement describing career objec-tives and area of clinical interest
9. submit a case study that represents the applicant's level of expertise in the provision or care
10. submit a completed application with non-refundable appli-cation fee
11. Have an interview by phone or in person with a faculty member 

Students who do not hold a family nurse practitioner degree and who do not have national certification as a family nurse practitioner may complete a gap analysis rubric which will be used to ascertain additional courses needed to complete the DNP degree.

Students must be board certified as an FNP (ANCC or AANP) and maintain employment as an FNP prior to starting the 3rd semester of the DNP program. This is necessary to complete the DNP capstone and residency requirements.

Transfer Credits:

Students who hold a master's degree will complete a gap analysis to evaluate credits that will be transferred and applied to the DNP pro-gram.

Deferment:

Any student accepted into the program who wishes to defer enroll-ment must write a letter to the Program Director requesting permission to defer. Permission will be granted for one year beginning at the time of request. Filing the request in a timely fashion secures a place for the following year's class. 

Academic Requirements and Standards 

Students accepted into the Doctor of Nursing Practice program must adhere to the standards and policies set forth by the University and the Family Nurse Practitioner Program. Students are responsible for understanding all material found in the DNP Student Handbook.

In order to maintain continuous enrollment in the program, all grad-uate students must achieve a "B" in all courses and maintain a cumu-lative grade point average of 3.0 to continue in the sequence and graduate from the program. 

Off-Site Requirements 

Practicum hours:

All students are required to have a minimum of 1,000 hours that will include hours from their master's degree program and the DNP hours.

Students provide documentation of practicum hours earned for their advanced practice degree. The student will be responsible for documenting and submitting to faculty, the hours earned each semester, as well as maintaining a record of total hours earned during the pro-gram.

Clinical Agency Requirements: 

The student is responsible for compliance with rules and regulations of the healthcare agency. 

Capstone and Final Requirements

Capstone I:

Students will develop a proposal for an evidence-based project which addresses a practice issue affecting or related to a selected aggregate or population, organization, health care system, health care policy, or educational system.

Capstone II:

Students in this course will complete their evidence-based project and implement it and present initial findings to their clinical mentor and faculty member.

Portfolio: 

All students will develop a portfolio. Specific items of coursework, evidence-based case studies, DNP project, presentations, self-reflec-tion papers, published articles, poster presentations, CV, and future goal statement will be used to demonstrate the competencies needed for degree completion. The DNP portfolio is complete when all re-quired documents have been approved and presented to the faculty mentor in digital form. 

Procedures

Students are advised to refer to the Dominican University New York Student Handbook and the Doctor of Nursing Practice Student Handbook for additional information.

Advisement:

Once a student is accepted into the Doctor of Nursing Practice Program he/she is assigned an advisor. Graduate students should make an appointment to register for courses, to discuss drop/add procedures, and for counseling on progression in the program. Please contact the Program Director whose office is located in the Prusmack Center, Second Floor, Room 210.

Health and Insurance Requirements:

All graduate students must show evidence of an annual physical examination with up-to-date immunizations, a PPD or chest x-ray, and/or titers as required by regulatory agencies. In addition, all students must hold Nurse Practitioner malpractice insurance coverage.

Leave of Absence:

Once enrolled a student may request a leave of absence from the program/University, which, when granted, permits the student to maintain matriculation status although not in attendance and to resume study without applying for readmission. Leave of absence status is ordinarily granted for no more than two semesters. To be official, this request must be submitted in writing to the Program Director at least one month prior to the semester for which the leave is sought, unless extenuating circumstances prevail.